Watch: Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore Break Silence After Returning to EarthButch Wilmore is clocking out for good. Four months after the NASA astronaut and his colleague Sunita "Suni" Williams returned from their eight-day-turned-nine-month space mission, the 62-year-old has officially retired. "After 25 years at NASA, flying in four different spacecraft, accumulating 464 days in space," NASA wrote in an August 6 press release, "astronaut and test pilot Butch Wilmore has retired." Indeed, a majority of Butch's days in space were accumulated in the last year, when he and Suni spent 286 days at the International Space Station following a malfunction with the spacecraft they took from Earth. In return, acting director of NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston Steve Koerner called Butch's work for the organization "exemplary." As he put it, Butch's "lasting legacy of fortitude will continue to impact and inspire the Johnson workforce, future explorers, and the nation for generations." The milestone also gave Butch an opportunity to reflect on his career. readAstronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore Break Silence After Returning to Earth "From my earliest days, I have been captivated by the marvels of creation, looking upward with an insatiable curiosity," Butch wrote in the release. "This curiosity propelled me into the skies, and eventually to space, where the magnificence of the cosmos mirrored the glory of its creator in ways words can scarcely convey." But the former NASA astronaut admitted that life is just as beautiful with his feet on the ground. "Even as I ventured beyond Earth's limits, I remained attuned to the beauty and significance of the world below," Butch added, "recognizing the same intricate design evident among the stars is also woven into the fabric of life at home." Despite Butch's last mission happening by accident, he nor Suni expressed any real frustration with their elongated time in space.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images"It's work," Butch told the New York Times back in March. "It's wonderful enjoyment. It's fun." He added, "This is not an easy business that we're taking part in. It is very difficult. Human spaceflight is tough and sometimes you run into situations that are unexpected and we found ourself in one." For more on Butch's last dance, keep reading...
Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP) (Photo by MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO/AFP via Getty ImagesJune 2024Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore launched into space on Boeing's Starliner spacecraft June 5, 2024, with plans to stay at the International Space Station for eight days. Shortly after their launch, the astronauts reported a "stable and isolated leak" in their propulsion-related plumbing, per the Associated Press. While the leak remained stable throughout their travel to the ISS, four more leaks emerged and five thrusters-devices used for acceleration-failed. They were able to safely dock at the ISS, with the understanding that their mission would likely last longer than eight days. Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesAugust 2024Two months after their faulty launch, NASA came forward with the debacle of the two astronauts stuck in space. At the time, the space organization was still trying to determine whether the Starliner would be fit for a return to space, and Boeing maintained at the time it should have been, with the company telling E! News in a statement, "If NASA decides to change the mission, we will take the actions necessary to configure Starliner for an uncrewed return." Meanwhile, former NASA official Scott Hubbard quelled public concern over Wilmore and Williams' predicament, telling the Associated Press the astronauts-who have each been to space before on prior missions-are only "kind of stuck," emphasizing that they have "plenty of supplies and work to do."Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesAugust 2024After NASA confirmed that Williams and Wilmore would return to Earth on a SpaceX mission in February or March, rather than attempting to fix the Starliner, their families spoke out. Wilmore's wife Deanna Wilmore told WVLT in August of her family's predicament, "You just sort of have to roll with it and expect the unexpected." Meanwhile, Williams' husband Michael shared that he didn't think his wife would be unsettled by spending more time in space, telling The Wall Street Journal, "That's her happy place."Nasa/UPI/ShutterstockNovember 2024Just before celebrating six months in space, Williams and Wilmore shared insight into their Thanksgiving celebrations aboard the ISS. "We have a bunch of food that we've packed away that is Thanksgiving-ish," Wiliams told NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt from the ISS on Nov. 27. "Some smoked turkey, some cranberry, apple cobbler, green beans and mushrooms and mashed potatoes." Williams also reiterated that she and Wilmore were doing just fine amid their extended stay in space. "People are worried about us, really, don't worry about us," she added. "We're feeling good, working out, e